John is driven to create public value and design deeply human centred experiences through the collective efforts of ThinkPlace across its seven studios. ThinkPlace applies design and innovation in fields of national and international interest across diverse areas such as social inclusion, regulation, health care, law enforcement, renewable energy, aged care, international development, agriculture and more.

John has particular expertise in working with complex systems and has academic and practical background in this area. He is an expert in bringing very diverse groups together to co-design approaches to intractable challenges.

John is the Founding Partner of ThinkPlace, a strategic design consultancy known for its international leadership applying design thinking and innovation to the areas that matter most: social cohesion, economic prosperity and environmental sustainability. John has pioneered the application of design to large complex systems since 2000 when he applied design thinking to Australia’s tax system.

For the past five years, John has co-hosted with colleagues from Stanford and Harvard universities the annual Innovation Summit in Como, Italy. The summit brings thought leaders together to progress the field of innovation. The group is currently working with representatives from the UN and major NGOs to explore new approaches to realise the Sustainable Development Goals.